Spartan Ops: The Line
by Brainal
Summary: Trust is something that is not meant to be broken, yes? Yet, when you're forced against your will to build relations up, then tear them down years later, you begin to question, ponder. SPARTANS as viewed as emotionless, merciless, unforgiving, killing machines. Yet, no one seems to understand that, at their core, they're just as human as you, and me.
1. Prologue

Spartan Ops: The Line

Prologue

The universe seems to have it's roots set in history. Everything is bound to repeat. Everything is bound to happen again. Just in a different form. This is no exception for the SPARTAN Program. However, with almost all of the SPARTAN II's gone, most of the III's sent on suicide missions, and the IV's dealing with the Infinity, there's been a lack of good super soldiers about.

And that's about where we start. ONI, wanting the SPARTAN III program to continue, has launched a small scale op. Delta Company, the would be next generation of SPARTAN III's, was often regarded as disbanded. However, there was a change in plans. After the Onyx incident, it was obvious it would be hard to find a remote planet to train a mass amount of children as soldiers. So, in came the Selective Soldier Protocol. A small idea listed by ONI, in which only thirty of the original three-hundred were to be trained and deployed. They wanted the Program back on it's feet, yes, but it was baby steps for now. The children are now, about the age of twelve. Though they look well over the age of sixteen. Some even appear to be young adults. Their training carried out in a restricted section of some newly colonized outer-planet after the Human-Covenant War.

Now, why are we forsaking morals here? Aren't the SPARTAN IV's efficient? The problem with an SPARTAN IV is the same as any marine. They have their limited training. They have their mentality to question things. They have a past. They have much more to them one would first assume. However, a SPARTAN III? What are they? They're but an orphan fighting for their place in this world. They're willing to follow orders, less likely to question orders, exactly what ONI wants. Because there will always be those, "dirty jobs" that need cleaning up. One that someone like a marine or IV wouldn't be able to handle. Like Gamma Company, Delta is to be augmented with the 009762-OO mutagen to increase their strength, pain tolerance, aggression, and endurance. Along with it's counter active's.

It's 2558, about the same time Infinity is deployed on Requiem. This is some foreign planet. Way out in space. ONI decided this would be a nice location to train Delta. However, things aren't always as they seem. The wildlife here makes some nice hunting targets and even survival sessions. But, as stated, things aren't as they seem.


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

The bus rolled along the swampy land of Kerosin. The whole planet was a practical swamp, no seas at all. Due to this, the air is often thick with moisture, and a thick fog is usual. As was such the case now. The children sat, donned in short-sleeved green shirts bearing their name, beige cargo pants and combat boots. They looked out their windows in silence, deadpan looks on their face. All they could see was the white, pasty looking, cloud shrouding all sides. In the very back stood thirty lockers, each with their own name to it. Driving the bus was a marine, who's buddy was by his side smoking a cigarette and grumbling about the luck of their assignment. The driver just grinned as he heard his friend drone on and on about the humidity.

However, one particular figure stood out. A woman, standing at about 6' 1", she was about a head above the complaining marine beside her. She wasn't exactly dressed for a casual bus trip, instead she wore full MJOLNIR armor. Donning standard Mark V armor, with her helmet resting on her hip. Her golden eyes scanned the kids, trying to single out the ones that actually seemed interested in what they were doing. Of course none of them were particularly excited about being dragged out of bed at Six A.M for a hunting trip. She saw the occasional interest in one's eye every so often, but none of them showed a spark of passion.

Before long the bus had rolled to a stop, and the woman cleared her throat. All eyes were on her in an instant. Originally being from Alpha Company, the kids did have quote a bit of respect for the woman. She stepped forward, speaking as she paced down the aisle. "As you know. You're here to train. And today, we have something special for you." She walked up to the locker labeled, "Molly", and opened it up. She pulled out a combat knife and crossbow, which raised quite a few eyebrows.

She let herself have a small grin as she continued to explain. "However. I decided that sometimes, you have to fight without a rifle, or a sidearm. There will be times when you have to fight tooth and nail for survival. And you won't have a single magazine left." She stopped next to Molly, twirling the knife around in her fingers and grabbing the blade, holding the blade out for the girl to take. Molly, a tall girl of Philippine decent, reached out and grabbed it from her commanding officer. The Second Lieutenant dropped the crossbow on to the empty spot next to her and continued to pace.

"Although… this isn't your normal hunting trip." She took a pause, a small smile pursued on her lips as she could feel their eyes borrowing into her back. "No… This is a competition." She slowly turned, a smile growing on her face as she saw their eyes light up. That's what jolted the energy into them. It wasn't their morning meals, or the coffee or tea they're allowed to have. It was the ability to go head to head, and allow the lust for first place to consume them.

"However." She began, her smile still there. "You will be assigned a specific target. A species. It will work in a point value. You have a specific target of who you're supposed to kill, it will be marked. You take care of that, five points. You kill someone else's target? Five points. One point…" She could already see them glancing at each other, the best one's wanting to take the weaker one's targets, "…Deducted, for each animal killed that isn't marked." That's when some of the eyes came to worry. There was bound to be pack animals, and other's who looked incredibly close to those that are marked. "You will find your weapons and marked animal in your locker. You will also find a standard issue UNSC marine helmet in their. Always wear it. It has a tracker and video recordings in it." Her smiled faded, and a very serious look came across her face. "I do NOT, want to see any casualties! Believe it or not, some of these are extremely dangerous! I want extreme caution!" She gave them a glare, scaring the worry out of their eyes. "Dismissed." She said simply, turning and walking off of the bus. The kids all stood and saluted until she was gone, and then began a mad scramble for their lockers.

The marines chuckled, watching the 2nd Lt. walk past the front of the bus and wait about for them all to be ready. "That Rosetta…" The driver said, "Shit man… I'd hate to be those kids. Am I right, Earl?" Earl responded with a grin and unsoldered his Assault Rifle, "They'll be fine. You have to soft of a heart Murph." He chuckled, stepping off of the bus himself and leaning against it. Waiting for the stampede of future Spartans to begin. Murph joined him soon, looking around the beaten dirt road. "Shit man." Murph began as he looked beyond the fog, into the dense forested swamp beside the road. "Ain't it a little, I don't know, odd this path way was here before we even came here?"

Earl made a noise of dismissal as he threw his weight forward, stepping forwards toward Murph, "Nah man. I mean, maybe the Covenant had a base here for awhile before bailing? Hell, maybe even another race was here." He shrugged, giving Murph a rough pat on the back. "Leave the thinking to the higher ups, eh? Were just grunts, mate."

"Yeah. Grunts being let in on a huge ass secret." Murph muttered in retort. He turned to see the children filling out and forming a line in front of their CO. He turned to the bus and walked along it until he found a ladder to the roof. He climbed up and took a seat, letting out a loud sigh. He watched as the 2nd Lt. scanned the kids, before raising her pistol and firing it, signaling the start. Instantly they took off. Some of them going by themselves, others in pairs, a few in a large group. In a few seconds, they were all gone, hardly a trace left behind. "God damn kids are like ninjas…" Murph let out another sigh, then fell back with a loud thump, deciding a nap was nice right now.

A certain pair, consisted of Walsh, a tall muscular boy from a long line of Scott's, and Carter, a medium height boy with a slim build, ran through the swamp rather, loudly. Mostly trying to distance themselves for now. Walsh was about 6'1", short black hair with soft green eyes. Carter, in the meantime, was 5'7", with some slightly beyond regulation brown hair, with eyes to match. They ran for a solid ten minutes, before eventually coming to a stop.

Walsh took a seat on a huge root, holding his knees as he panted heavily. "Holy… I forgot… How bad… This air was…" He coughed a bit, as if trying to clear his lungs of the ungodly fog.

Carter was doubled over, catching his breath from a light pant. He stood up right and only grinned at him as he wiped a bead of sweat off of his brow. "And you called me crazy for going for a jog out here every morning?" Carter teased him, chuckling slightly at himself. "But damn… It's nasty today… Worst it's been in awhile…"

"Yeah… I know right? I don't remember it being this bad." Walsh took a few deep breaths, finally collecting himself before pulling out his picture of his target. Walsh's target was a bi-pedaled beast. It had a long slim body, colorful too. A light cobalt skin color with teal stripes. It's head was pointed in a duck shaped way, with a single, long horn protruding from underneath it's beak. It looked like something fresh out of Spore. "What kind of… Thing… is this…" He muttered and sighed "What the hell of a freak show is yours?" Walsh asked Carter, looking up from a somewhat disappointed face palm.

Carter flipped his around and showed two beasts. The one in the foreground was a white beast, it's skin looking rough with even harder looking patches on it's joints and back. It was quadra-pedal, looking about six feet long. It's head was elongated, like a snout. It had it's mouth open, revealing it was quadruple-hinged mandibles, similar to the Sangheili, except quite a bit larger. It had rows of razor sharp teeth along it, three for each mandible, at least twenty per mandible. It had two pairs of eyes, each a threatening shade of blood red. It's arms were long, composing of at least three different joints, which eventually led to a large hand with extremely deadly looking claws. The hind legs were no different, the only difference being the feet were more flat footed. "I'm hunting an albino." Carter said with a heavy sigh. He pointed at the other beast in the background, which looked similar to the albino one, but was black in skin color, and it's eyes were a light shade of blue.

"Daaamn…" Walsh whistled, staring at the deadly beast. "You have your work cut out for you…" He snickered a little and climbed up on to the root, leaning against the large tree. "I just have this pansy ass thing… I should be done in no time if I can find it…" He shrugged slightly, looking over at Carter, "I still can't believe you're not exhausted from all that running." Walsh cracked his neck and slowly slid off the large root.

Carter shrugged, taking his helmet off as he ran a hand throw his sweat soaked hair. "Eh. Like I said. You get used to it." He ruffled his hair a little, drying it as best he could. "The trick is mostly dedication. The Lieutenant may get us to do a lot of work, but if you don't do anything in yo-" He cut off as a loud thump resounded from the back of his skull, and he feel forward into the muddy ground.

Walsh slung the crossbow back over his back, and turned Carter over. He grabbed the photo from his hand and stuck it in his pocket. "Sorry mate." He said speaking to himself, Carter out cold. "I gotta win this. You can't blame me for this. She even said don't take your helmet it off." Walsh patted Carter on his shoulder before moving his hand down and stealing his knife from him. He then stood and began walking away from the scene of the crime. After walking a good fifty some yards away, Walsh took out his knife and impaled in a tree trunk. He did the same with Carter's knife, and began to slowly climb upwards. He'd be able to act more as a sniper in this case, and not have to worry about scaring off his beasts.


End file.
